Do Consumers Kind of Think the Metaverse Is the Internet With Cool Friends?

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Most consumers don’t have a clue what the metaverse does, but that doesn’t stop marketers, VCs, research companies — or anyone with a stake in its success — from considering it a done deal.

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A study from Talent agency UTA and production company Vox Media surveyed more than 4,000 internet users and found that nearly half of them (48%) knew “nothing” about the metaverse, but that 68% of them (and 88% of Gen Zs) “have actually participated in immersive metaverse activities” such as Fortnite or Roblox.

Those percentage figures don’t match, but Tubefilter’s Sam Gutelle suggests the truth is that some people don’t realize they’re already engaging with the metaverse. A lot of Web3 development is occurring inside of popular video games like Roblox and Fortnite, so a significant number of consumers can embrace the metaverse while playing the games they already love.

On the other hand, the truth could be that consumers don’t know they in the metaverse because they are not in fact in the metaverse. They are participating online in a multiplayer game that has been rebranded as the “metaverse” only in the last two years by a variety of vested interests from entertainment companies to brands to big tech in an attempt to gouge more data and sell us back more things we don’t want (like digital collectables).

UTA, for instance, has inserted a data point that found the vast majority of the surveyed people (88%) saying they would be interested in entering a new metaverse space if it was centered around a celebrity they admire. (Guess who “owns” the celebrities?)

What’s more, apparently the thing people want most is access to “live” events, with 64% saying they enjoy attending events without having to leave their home.

“What this study reveals is that creators and brands who sit idly awaiting some ‘golden moment’ when the metaverse ‘arrives’ do so at their own peril,” said Joe Kessler, partner and head of UTA IQ, in a statement. “In fact, the metaverse won’t present itself in a singular moment. It’s here now, and it’s the latest stage of the ever-accelerating evolution of media consumption and engagement, one in which consumers — especially young ones — can experience truly immersive interaction inside the digital environments they inhabit.”